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MAY 12,  2016

SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – AT 11:53 P.M. ET:

CHICAGO FOLLIES – From Daily Caller:   Under a new set of guidelines rolled out last week by Chicago public schools, children will now be required to address transgender students and employees by their preferred name and pronouns — or face the consequences.  Transgender students and employees can choose their preferred bathroom, locker room, name and pronouns, and everyone else is required to affirm the individual’s new identity, according to the guidelines.  Trangender students and adults in the CPS system can require their peers to adopt gender neutral terminology, such as using the pronoun “ze” instead of the usual “he” or “she"...Students or employees who consciously use the “wrong” pronouns will be in violation of school policies on comprehensive non-discrimination, Title IX and sexual harassment, and student code of conduct.  The stench of fascism is in the air. 

JUST A BIT OF CORRUPTION – From Daily Caller:   A Daily Caller News Foundation investigation reveals that Bill and Hillary Clinton received at least $100 million from autocratic Persian Gulf states and their leaders, potentially undermining Democratic presidential candidate Hillary’s claim she can carry out independent Middle East policies.  As a presidential candidate, the amount of foreign cash the Clintons have amassed from the Persian Gulf states is “simply unprecedented,” says national security analyst Patrick Poole.  “These regimes are buying access. You’ve got the Saudis. You’ve got the Kuwaitis, Oman, Qatar and the UAE. There are massive conflicts of interest. It’s beyond comprehension,” Poole told The DCNF in an interview.  The Clintons are a corrupt political corporation.  Is this the best we can do?

WHO NEEDS ROMANCE?  From London's Mirror:    First dates could become much less stressful and awkward - thanks to a Blade Runner-style emotion detector that can tell if a person has the hots for you.  The pioneering device is inspired by the Voight-Kampff machine featured in Ridley Scott's 1982 sci-fi thriller starring Harrison Ford and Seann Young.  In the film, the polygraph-like interrogation tool is used by police to determine if someone is an android by provoking emotional responses.  The fictional gadget measures blush response, respiration, heart rate and eye movement in response to questions dealing with empathy.  And the new machine bears notable similarities to the emotion detector.  Designed by researchers at Lancaster University, it includes an ear-piece which measures skin and heart rate responses, as well as pupil-dilation measure.  They're taking the fun out of everything.

May 12, 2016       Permalink

THEY ARE TEACHING OUR CHILDREN – AT 8:28 A.M. ET:   This is Harvard, the most influential university in America.  From the Washington Times:

A Harvard law professor has called for liberals to begin treating like Nazis those who subscribe to Christian or conservative beliefs.

In a Friday blog post at Balkinization, Mark Tushnet said conservatives and Christians have lost the culture wars, and now the question is “how to deal with the losers.”

“My own judgment is that taking a hard line (‘You lost, live with it’) is better than trying to accommodate the losers,” he wrote.

“Trying to be nice to the losers didn’t work well after the Civil War, nor after Brown,” Mr. Tushnet wrote, citing the Supreme Court case on segregation. “And taking a hard line seemed to work reasonably well in Germany and Japan after 1945.”

Mr. Tushnet said liberals should stop being so hesitant to advance their agenda through the judiciary, saying a majority of federal judges have been appointed by Democratic presidents, and they need not worry “reversal by the Supreme Court” now that former Associate Justice Antonin Scalia is dead.

COMMENT:  Can you believe that?  I checked that professor's history, and it is a radical one, as you might expect.  But he is teaching students, probably telling them that today's conservatives are the equivalent of the Nazis.  That is madness, and some will believe it.  And some of those will become judges.

May 12, 2016       Permalink 

SUCH RUDENESS, I'M SO UPSET – AT 8: 14 A.M. ET:  Bernie Sanders is really getting rough.  Why, isn't Bernie just your sweet old uncle, worrying about your future?  Uh, not really.  Bernie is a hardened leftist, and he really believes he can defeat Hillary Clinton and turn America into a socialist state.  The latest from his campaign is as rough as anything we've seen on the GOP side, outside of Donald Trump's worst moments.  From the Washington Times:   

Fresh off a big win in the West Virginia primary, Sen. Bernard Sanders‘ campaign said Wednesday the Democratic Party would be courting “disaster” if it nominates Hillary Clinton as its presidential nominee.

In a fundraising email to supporters, Sanders campaign manager Jeff Weaver cited recent polls showing the Vermont senator performing better against Republican Donald Trump in general election match-ups. Recent surveys have shown Mrs. Clinton virtually tied with Mr. Trump in the key battleground states of Ohio, Pennsylvania and Florida.

Citing those troubling figures, Mr. Weaver said the Democratic Party — and its superdelegates who are free to support either candidate — must reject Mrs. Clinton and embrace Mr. Sanders, or face a crushing defeat in November.

“For months, Bernie Sanders has out-polled Hillary Clinton against Donald Trump, and often by extraordinarily large margins. Because we must do everything we can to defeat Trump in November, our mission is to win as many pledged delegates as we can between now and June 14,” when the primary season ends, Mr. Weaver said. “Then we’re going to have a contested convention where the Democratic Party must decide if they want the candidate with the momentum who is best positioned to beat Trump, or if they are willing to roll the dice and court disaster simply to protect the status quo for the political and financial establishment of this country.”

Mr. Weaver also dismissed the notion that his candidate fares better against Mr. Trump only because he hasn’t been under the same white-hot spotlight Mrs. Clinton has faced for years.

COMMENT:  I think the Sanders people mean it, and I think Hillary has taken this challenge much too casually.  She apparently intends to limp across the convention finish line, rather than roar across.  Note that she was defeated by an unknown young senator when she ran for the nomination in 2008. 

It's also apparent that Clinton doesn't realize that the Democratic Party is experiencing the same kind of rebellion that the Republicans are experiencing. 

Sanders isn't a nice guy.  He's a committed ideologist.  Can you imagine who he would appoint to the Supreme Court?  I don't think he'll make it, but, if I were Hillary, still facing an FBI probe, I wouldn't take the chance.  Hillary's fate may well lie in the hands of Barack Obama, who will treat that FBI investigation according to what he thinks is good for him.  And he may decide that Hillary is not good for him.

May 12,  2016     Permalink 

REMARKABLE – AT 8:03 A.M. ET:  We're constantly told how damaging Donald Trump could be to the Republican Party in November.  But, wait a minute.  Is it possible Trump could attract an unusual number of Democratic votes?  From The Hill:

According to exit polls reported by ABC News, about one-third of Democratic primary voters would choose Trump in a general election match-up between him and Clinton. In that survey, 44 percent would choose Clinton, and 21 percent would choose neither candidate.

According to ABC News, about 80 percent of West Virginia Republican voters say they're excited or optimistic about what Trump would do if he were elected president, and 9 in 10 think Trump is likely to beat Clinton in a general election.

In a match-up between Trump and Clinton, about 90 percent of Republican primary voters in West Virginia say they would vote for Trump.

COMMENT:  Trump, who seemed to have a very keen ear to what people across the spectrum are thinking, has predicted that he'll gain Democratic votes among the disaffected workers who believe they've been left behind and ignored.

He could be right.  We had, in 1980, the Reagan Democrats, who thought their party had sold them out and trashed their values.  It seems they're still there in 2016, with the same justifiable anger and the same desire to stick it to the Democratic leadership.

May 12,  2016     Permalink

MAY 11,  2016

SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – AT 10:06 P.M. ET: 

WELL EXCUSE ME! – The new Muslim mayor of London needs a lesson in diplomacy.  From the Independent:   Sadiq Khan has offered to help Hillary Clinton defeat Donald Trump – pledging his successful campaign as a “template” to hers.  Mr Khan, the new Mayor of London, said he had successfully beaten the Conservatives’ “Donald Trump approach” to elections in last weeks’ vote.  “I think what we’ve shown — and I hope it’s a lesson that Hillary and others in American take on board, hope does ‘trump’ fear, forgive the pun,” he told reporters at the capital’s City Hall, according to the Politico website.  May we remind his honor that we don't require outside help to hold elections, and that his interference in our internal affairs is not appreciated.

THE TROUBLED RIO OLYMPICS – The Rio Olympics start August 5th, but they are mired in fear, warnings, and potential tragedy.  From Fox:   Brazil soccer great Rivaldo is telling tourists to stay away from the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro because of the danger of endemic violence.  Rivaldo posted the warning on his Instagram account and alluded to the case of a 17-year-old woman killed on Saturday in a shootout.  "Things are getting uglier here every day," Rivaldo wrote. "I advise everyone with plans to visit Brazil for the Olympics in Rio — to stay home. You'll be putting your life at risk here. This is without even speaking about the state of public hospitals and all the Brazilian political mess. Only God can change the situation in our Brazil."  This is only the tip of the proverbial iceberg.  The waters around Rio, required for the long-distance swimmers, are hopelessly polluted.  Pledges to clean them up have not been kept.  There is growing disease.  Some scientists are warning that illnesses acquired at the Olympics could spread around the world.  The dangers will become a major story as the games approach, although there will be serious and irresponsible attempts to minimize them.  Olympics mean big money, and you know what talks.  The well-being of the athletes should be the foremost concern, and it isn't.

LATEST SOCIAL GRIEVANCE – From heatstreet:    The University of Minnesota’s School of Public Health was a lot less healthy this week.  Tovar’s talk, entitled “Dispelling Myths: Fat, Fatphobia, and Challenging Social Stereotypes,” was designed to help students understand that “fat phobia” is rampant in a “white, heteronormative society” that is looking to actively oppress people with larger body types. Society’s bias against fat people is, apparently, a form of bigotry and discrimination, evident in everything from sexual preferences to the size of seats on public transportation.  She even, reportedly, compared society’s anti-fat culture to so-called “rape culture,” and chastised society for its obsession with what she termed “thin privilege.”  According to Tovar, the students, who study public health (at one of the top 10 schools for public health), shouldn’t push people they deem overweight to shed pounds, even if it’s better overall for health. “Weight loss is not a realistic goal for most people,” she said, declaring that exercise and diet are “social constructs.” She implored her audience to “lose hate, not weight” and rebel against “diet culture.” (Diets are, of course, just a tool of the hetero-normative Patriarchy.)  I'm so glad this was cleared up.  I will never again feel guilty digging into a hot-fudge sundae.  Free at last, free at last. 

May 11, 2016       Permalink

OH DEAR, OH DEAR, ANOTHER LITTLE PROBLEM WITH "SETTLED SCIENCE" – I DON'T KNOW WHAT I SHALL DO – AT 11:58 A.M. ET:  From Breitbart: 

Between 2010 and 2013 residents of the states surrounding the Great Lakes were told that climate change was permanently altering their environment and the record low water levels being recorded in the lakes may be the new normal. But now, only three years later, news reports are worried about beach erosion because the lakes have rebounded to record high levels of water.

This week, throughout the Chicago media landscape, as well as in reports in Michigan and Wisconsin, stories about a loss of swimming areas on public beaches are filling airwaves and newspaper pages. Residents and city officials are warning citizens that water levels in Lake Michigan and the other lakes are so high that the shallow swimming areas have been reduced as the water rises. Reports are also express worry over beach erosion and fears that the rising water is a danger to other infrastructure like roads.

In Chicago, DNAInfro.com, for instance, notes that water levels have risen a whopping four feet since 2013 and the new water is “swallowing up beaches.”

According to the Army Corps of Engineers, the water has risen 15 inches higher than this time last year and may rise another six inches before the summer heat starts its cycle of evaporation.

And...

In 2012 National Geographic sonorously warned that the “climate-related trend” was on the verge of laying waste to the region.

Crain’s Detroit was also writing in 2013 that communities living on the edges of the region’s monumental bodies of water were going to have to “adapt” to the new normal of climate change.

Naturally, far left sources were absolutely sure that global warming was drying up the lakes. In 2013 far left website Think Progress worried its readers with claims that climate change was “damaging” the lakes and would present “implications for the environment and the economy.”

The Natural Resource Defense Council even contemplated lawsuits to prevent cities on the lakes from tapping into them as a source of water.

COMMENT:  I'm sure there's some explanation that corresponds to Barack Obama's scientific thinking.  Ben Rhodes will find it. 

In the meantime, of course, we'll be asked to spend trillions of dollars fighting the plague, the heartbreak, the personal embarrassment of climate change.  Just make the check out to the UN.

May 11, 2016        Permalink

IRAN THREATENS – AT 11:08 A.M. ET:  Just yesterday, Grand Admiral Kerry, our secretary of state, was encouraging European firms to do business with Iran.  After all, why not build up an enemy of the West?  Makes sense, doesn't it?  Someday there will be statues of Kerry, with inscriptions about the greatness of his statesmanship.  The statues will be in Tehran.  Today, we hear this from Iran:

The Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) threatened to "drown" any US warships approaching Iran, a top general said Tuesday, according to state-controlled media.

“We have informed Americans that their presence in the Persian Gulf is an absolute evil,” Rear Admiral Ali Fadavi stated to state media. “Americans are aware that Iran would destroy their warships if they take a wrong measure in the region.”

He further threatened that the US would "lose control of everything" by drawing others into Middle-East affairs.

"There has never been normal conditions in the Persian Gulf and Americans can feel the presence of IRGC navy forces at any spot,” he added. “Iran’s great power has forced US to consider creation of deterrent capabilities.”

Fadavi also boasted that the West remains unaware of Iran's alleged naval capabilities, including surface-to-air missiles.

If we are unaware of Iran's naval capabilities, then maybe we're also unaware of parts of its nuclear program.

The threats surface just days after top White House adviser Ben Rhodes revealed the US deliberately misled the American public about the 2015 Iran deal.

While the public was led to believe talks began after the election of "moderate" Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, talks with Islamists in the country began far earlier, he said.

In November of 2013, it was revealed that a preliminary deal between Iran and the West was made possible due to secret talks that the United States and Iran held for more than half a year and were authorized by US President Barack Obama himself. Those discussions were kept hidden even from America's closest friends, including its five negotiating partners and from Israel.

COMMENT:  Yes, we know about Ben Rhodes, whose brother is the president of CBS News.  And we know about White House deception about an issue involving millions of lives, the Iran nuclear program.

I'd like to see Congressional hearings on the status of our naval forces near Iran.  I think it's right to worry that our ships, including supercarriers, may be more vulnerable than we think.  We might also worry that Iran does indeed have weapons we don't know about.

But, hey, let's trade with Iran.  Build up their economy.  The send Kerry and his boss to get the mental help they need.

May 11, 2016        Permalink

THE DOWN BALLOT – AT 9:55 A.M. ET:  That refers to all the races below the presidency, appearing on the November ballot.  We're starting to get early indications of whether the Trump candidacy will have much effect on the result.  From The Hill:

Senate races in three battleground states — Florida, Ohio and Pennsylvania — are nearly deadlocked, according to a new Quinnipiac University poll released Wednesday.

In Ohio, incumbent Sen. Rob Portman (R) has 42 percent support, trailing Democratic opponent Ted Strickland, who has 43 percent. The poll sampled 1,042 Ohio voters and has a margin of error of three points.

In Pennsylvania, Sen. Pat Toomey (R) has a one-point edge over Democrat Katie McGinty, 45 percent to 44 percent. The poll sampled 1,077 Pennsylvania voters and has a margin of error of three points.

In Florida, Rep. Patrick Murphy (D-Fla.) leads all five Republican candidates by between one and six points.

The Republicans running are Rep. Ron DeSantis (R-Fla.), Rep. David Jolly (R-Fla.), Florida Lt. Gov. Carlos Lopez-Cantera, and businessmen Carlos Beruff and Todd Wilcox.

The Florida contest is a race to replace retiring Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.). The poll sampled 1,051 Florida voters and has a margin of error of three points.

COMMENT:  Actually, there's nothing shocking here.  We knew long ago that all three races would be close.  Two of the three (Pennsylvania and Ohio) feature Republican incumbents fighting for re-election in swing states.  The third (Florida) features a race for the seat left open by Marco Rubio.  These are not easy states for either party. 

But I certainly don't see the devastating effects predicted if Trump moves toward victory in the Republican presidential nomination race.  It will take months before these races shake out and we see real trends.

May 11,  2016     Permalink